Dear Editor,
Death smiles at all of us, and all we can do is smile back. Be it a celebrity, commoner or ordinary civilian, death is part of our journey that we must learn to embrace. The passing of Michael Jackson did not come as a surprise or shock, because in the past months I saw someone with so much pain who was simply tired. As a matter of fact, I felt that his success in the ’80s and ’90s came with more pain and burden than in the ’70s.

I have always been a fan of his music; he transformed music and dance and brought it to a level which others followed and which inspired them. I am absolutely certain that his music will live on and be played for many years to come. I can’t think of anyone who would disagree and I hope that the music industry will create a museum in his honour, for he deserves one similar to Elvis Presley.

MJ has a huge number of memorable songs, and I would like to single out ‘The International Anthem’ – along with all the other singers – and the one from the movie, Free Willy, “Will You Be There.”

On the other hand, I could never comprehend the reason why someone would go to the extreme of changing their image from black to white, and it’s also surprising to learn that after so much wealth was gained, it more or less vanished. If I had one question to ask MJ, it would have been did he regret being African American?

Two other persons who contributed to the entertainment world were the late Farah Fawcett (Charlie’s Angels) and Ed McMahon from Star Search.
Yours faithfully,
T Pemberton